Hannah Montana Forever: Why Miley’s Fans are Smiley!

Tuesday 16 November 2010 10:51 BST

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Hannah Montana Forever: Why Miley's Fans are Smiley!

The latest series of one of the Disney Channel's most instantly recognisable stars, Hannah Montana Forever, began its eagerly anticipated run in the UK at the beginning of October with a special double bill of back-to-back brand new episodes.

Since Hannah Montana first debuted on the Disney Channel in 2006, the programme has garnered a large following of loyal fans and has made icons of the stars of the show. Over the intervening years, fans of the series have enjoyed watching the development of Hannah Montana from a child star into a burgeoning teen talent and this final series will continue that journey, with just one slight but important difference.

When the fourth series of Hannah Montana was announced, it was also revealed that it would be the final series, much to the initial despair of many Hannah fans. However, that initial sadness was soon tempered with the news that the Disney Channel had ambitious plans for the fourth series.

Firstly, the 12-part series was to be filmed entirely in high definition. This was a first for the series and in another break from tradition, the Disney Channel announced that the final show would be a special finale episode, lasting an hour, which would draw to a conclusion the story of Hannah Montana thus far.

Fans of the programme were also cheered up by the news that making a return for the final series is Hannah Montana/Miley Stewart, played by Miley Cyrus. Her real-life father Billy Ray Cyrus also reprises his role as Hannah's likable father Robby Stewart. The regular cast also welcomes the return of Jason Earles as Hannah's crazy older brother Jackson, Emily Osment as Hannah's long-standing best friend Lilly and Moises Arias as the young megalomaniac entrepreneur, Rico.

The new series also begins in a new setting, as the Stewart family, complete with Lilly in tow, move into a new home. As always, things do not always run quite as smoothly as planned. For starters, Bobby Ray has a little surprise for his darling daughter and her friend as he has taken it upon himself to decorate their bedroom. Meanwhile, Jackson tries his best to impress their new neighbour TJ, or more particularly, TJ's cousin Siena, in his own inimitable way.

Over the course of the series, fans of the show can expect to find out other shocking revelations, twists and turns to the Hannah Montana story. What has happened between Lilly and Oliver? Will Hannah and Jake get back together? Will Robby finally find a soul mate? Will Jackson manage to hold down a girlfriend and keep Rico happy? Can Miley Stewart keep Hannah Montana a secret much longer?

Fans of Hannah Montana Forever will no doubt be enthralled as the show airs over the forthcoming weeks and months, but it is not only the television series which is instantly accessible to fans. The Disney Channel has launched an improved and updated version of the Hannah Montana section of its website to allow fans to become a part of the Hannah Montana world like never before.

For the discerning Hannah Montana enthusiast, the website offers a fantastic amount of extra information, games, pictures, downloadable content and detail that knits perfectly with the television show. In the Hannah Montana games section, fans can amuse themselves by playing Rico's Surf Shop Challenge; a game where players have to take on the keen business acumen of Rico and earn more money than him over the course of a series of challenges.

Another game with a different slant is Miley and Lilly's Designer Dreams. This is a Hannah Montana dress up game in which the player can take on the role of a designer for the famous' versions of Miley and Lilly, Hannah and Lola. The player can then design a whole range of colourful clothes, shoes and hairstyles for their online versions of the famous character to wear. A similar design theme runs through the Roomy Room Re-Do game, where Miley and Lilly get to decorate Miley's room; a nice tie in to what happens in the opening episode of the final series.

The revamped Hannah Montana website however does not just contain games. There is also a section on the website with videos linked to the final series, including the actual pop video shot for the theme song of the series, the poignant Ordinary Girl as well as lots of Hannah Montana music videos pertaining to events and songs in the new series.

There is also an extensive downloads section which is sure to delight the many Hannah Montana fans across the globe. From Hannah Montana wallpapers to buddy icons, t-shirt transfers and even colourful, vibrant Hannah Montana posters, there is a whole range of goodies for the eager Hannah fan to download free of charge.

Contained on the website is also an extensive section containing some of the most colourful Hannah Montana pictures available, showcasing not only Hannah in superb clarity, but also featuring other members of the cast. In addition to the pictures, you can also find the Hannah Montana Forever soundtrack which was released in the UK on October 18th.

It is possibly a time of reflection for many Hannah Montana fans. As the fourth and final series continues to air on UK screens, there will no doubt be many who feel saddened that the Hannah Montana series is drawing to an exciting conclusion. With the accompanying CD of music from the show hitting the shops and the launch of the fantastic new website continuing to provide fans with plenty of opportunities to express their enjoyment of the Hannah Montana phenomenon in a variety of ways, the end of the series of Hannah Montana may only be the beginning of her long-lasting appeal.

It certainly looks like the many happy fans of the final TV series of Hannah Montana Forever, combined with the brand new website, have certainly got the best of both worlds for a long time to come.